Fishing Cat
Mainland Leopard Cat
Sunda Leopard Cat
Flat-headed Cat
Rusty-spotted Cat
Pallas's Cat

  • Fishing Cat
  • Mainland Leopard Cat
  • Sunda Leopard Cat
  • Flat-headed Cat
  • Rusty-spotted Cat
  • Pallas's Cat

The 6 Cats of the Leopard Cat Lineage

The Leopard Cat lineage consists of six Asian wild cats - five of the Prionailurus genus, some of which occupy wetland habitats and one cat of the Otocolobus genus which occurs in Central Asia.

The Leopard Cat lineage is the second 'youngest' lineage that arose around 6.2 MYA (million years ago) from ancestors that crossed back to Asia from North America during the second ice age, and the resulting species mainly occupy Southern and Central Asia.

Going back further in Felidae evolution, this line descended from ancestors that migrated to North America from Asia following the first ice age 8 to 10 MYA, when the Bering Strait land bridge linked Asia and North America.

Leopard Cat Lineage Cats - Classification

In scientific classification (taxonomy) the small Asian wild cats of the Leopard Cat lineage belong to the cat family Felidae and the small cat subfamily Felinae. The higher and lower classifications of this group are as follows:

Kingdom: Animalia   (animals)

Phylum: Chordata   (vertebrates)

Class: Mammalia   (mammals)

Order: Carnivora   (carnivores)

Suborder: Feliformia   (cat-like)

Family: Felidae (cats)

Subfamily: Felinae (small cats)

Genus: Prionailurus

Species: Prionailurus viverrinus (Fishing Cat)

Species: Prionailurus bengalensis (Mainland Leopard Cat)

Species: Prionailurus javanensis (Sunda Leopard Cat)

Species: Prionailurus planiceps (Flat-headed Cat)

Species: Prionailurus rubiginosus (Rusty-spotted Cat)

Genus: Otocolobus

Species: Otocolobus manul (Pallas’s Cat)

Other small Asian wild cats are grouped under the Felis lineage and the Bay Cat lineage and the big Asian cats under the Panthera lineage.

Fishing Cat stickers, magnets and pins
Fishing Cat
Leopard Cat stickers, magnets and pins
Leopard Cats
Flat-headed Cat stickers, magnets and pins
Flat-headed Cat
Rusty-spotted Cat stickers, magnets and pins
Rusty-spotted Cat
Pallas's Cat stickers, magnets and pins
Pallas's Cat
Leopard Cat Lineage Classification Chart
Click chart to download.
Permission to use for personal or educational use.
Credit: www.WildCatFamily.com.

Prionailurus Genus

The five cats of the Prionailurus genus are Fishing Cat, Mainland and Sunda Leopard Cats, Flat-headed Cat and Rusty-spotted Cat.

1. Fishing Cat

(Prionailurus viverrinus)

Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) - Leopard Cat Lineage

Fishing Cat Classification, Conservation and Facts

2. Mainland Leopard Cat

(Prionailurus bengalensis)

Mainland Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) - Leopard Cat Lineage

Mainland Leopard Cat Classification, Conservation and Facts

3. Sunda Leopard Cat

(Prionailurus javanensis)

Sunda Leopard Cat (Prionailurus javanensis) - Leopard Cat Lineage

Sunda Leopard Cat Classification, Conservation and Facts

4. Flat-headed Cat

(Prionailurus planiceps)

Flat-headed Cat (Prionailurus planiceps) - Leopard Cat Lineage

Flat-headed Cat Classification, Conservation and Facts

5. Rusty-spotted Cat

(Prionailurus rubiginosus)

Rusty-spotted Cat (Prionailurus rubiginosus) - Leopard Cat Lineage Rusty-spotted Cat Classification, Conservation and Facts

Otocolobus Genus

The Otocolobus genus consists of only one cat - Pallas's Cat.

6. Pallas’s Cat

(Otocolobus manul)

Pallas's Cat - Leopard Cat Linage

Pallas's Cat Classification, Conservation and Facts

Leopard Cat Lineage Cat Quiz

1. Which two cat species live in aquatic habitats and have a primarily fish diet?

2. What features about these two cats are similar?

3. Which is one of the smallest cat species of all wild cats?

4. What is very different about the Pallas's Cat compared to most other cats?

5. Which is the most common small cat in Asia?

6. Which are the most threatened small cats in Asia?

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